Device for detecting yarn breakage



July 26, 1966 E. FINDLOW 3,262,180

DEVICE FOR DETECTING YARN BREAKAGE Original Filed July 2, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR: II L Fl'ndfow' July 26, 1966 E. FINDLOW 3,262,180

DEVICE FOR DETECTING YARN BREAKAGE Original Filed July 2. 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 -FIG. 2.-

INVENTORI Er): Fi d w United States Patent 3,262,180 DEVICE FOR DETECTING YARN BREAKAGE Eric Findlow, Macclesfield, England, assignor to Ernest Scragg & Sons, Limited, Macclesfield, England Continuation of application Ser. No. 292,335, July 2, 1963. This application May 12, 1965, Ser. No. 459,509 12 Claims. (Cl. 2850) The present application is a continuation of my application Serial No. 292,335, Device for Detecting Yarn Breakage, filed July 2, 1963, now abandoned.

This invention relates to textile machines and in particular to devices for detecting yarn breakage in textile machines.

It is well known in textile machines to provide detecting devices in the form of elements which rest on a running yarn so as to fall when the yarn breaks, and the falling movement of such an element is used to give a warning or simple indication of the fact that the yarn has broken.

However, particular problems are encountered when dealing with machines where a plurality of yarns move simultaneously to common forwarding rollers, for ex ample. For example, machines are known where yarn is simultaneously drawn from two packages while being wound around a single forwarding roller and then passed to a heater, a false twist crimping device, and a wind-up means. With a machine of this type if it should happen that one of the pair of yarns breaks, then this broken yarn tends to lap around the bottom forwarding roller, causing subsequent breakage of the second yarn, and such laps are very difificult to remove. Of course, it is possible to separate the forwarding roller from its driving roller, as is necessary during threading up of the machine, and of course it is also possible to stop the entire machine. However, it almost always happens that yarn breakage and lapping occurs when the operator is occupied at a task which does not permit him to observe the yarn breakage immediately upon occurrence thereof, and thus the lap may build up for a period of several minutes without there being any possibility of preventing it.

It is also known to provide structures for stopping the forwarding of the yarn or cutting the yarn in an automatic manner when the detecting device detects that the yarn has been broken, and in the case of a plurality of yarns being fed to common forwarding rollers, it is also possible to use such devices, but the requirement of providing separate detecting devices for the several yarns renders the structure extremely complex, particularly when these several detecting devices are operatively connected to a single yarn cutting means or yarn stopping means for actuating the latter to cut or stop the movement of all of the yarns.

It is accordingly a primary object of the present invention to provide a structure which is capable of detecting the breakage of one of a plurality of yarns while at the same time being far simpler than the prior art structure which was required for this purpose.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a structure for detecting breakage of one of a plurality of yarns while requiring the presence of only a single rod which falls when any one of the plurality of yarn breaks, so that in this way the structure is considerably simplified and in addition the connection of such a single rod to a yarn stopping or cutting device is also considerably simplified.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide for an assembly of the above type a yarn-engaging means which is of an exceedingly simple construction and very reliable in operation.

With these objects in view, the invention includes, in

a textile machine, an elongated rod and a support means which supports the rod for free falling movement to a given position. The rod carries, in accordance with the present invention, a yarn-engaging means which engages a plurality of yarns to maintain the rod above the position to which it is capable of freely falling as long as the yarn-engaging means engages the plurality of yarns. This yarn-engaging means of the present invention is swingably connected to the rod for free swingable movement with respect thereto when any one of the plurality of yarns breaks, and the swinging movement of the yarnengaging means with respect to the rod is such that the rod is released for falling movement whenever any one of the plurality of yarns breaks.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of one possible embodiment of a structure according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a view of the structure of FIG. 1 as seen from the right of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partly sectional elevation of the structure as seen from behind FIG. 1, FIG. 3 showing the cutting mechanism;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective illustration showing the yarn-engaging means of the present invention and its connection to the rod.

FIG. 5 is an illustration like FIG. 40f yarn-engaging means engaging four yarns; and

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic illustration of a ping mechanism.

Referring now to the drawings, it will be seen that the structure of the invention includes a single rod 11 which may be in the form of a simple wire, for example. This rod 11 swingably carries at its upper end, as viewed in the drawings, a yarn-engaging means 12. As is apparent particularly from FIG. 4, the yarn-engaging means 12 is in the form of an elongated member which is swingably connected intermediate its ends to one end of the rod 11, a pin 13 being carried by the rod 11 and extending through an opening of the yarn-engaging means 12 so as to connect the latter to the rod 11 for free swinging movement relative thereto. FIGS. 1 and 4 diagrammatically illustrate a pair of yarns 16 and 17 in dot-dash lines, and as is apparent particularly from FIG. 4, the yarn-engaging means 12 has a pair of yarnengaging portions 14 and 15 respectively located in opposite sides of the connection 13 of the yarn-engaging means to the rod 11, and these yarn-engaging portions 14 and 15 respectively engage the yarns 16 and 17. In fact, as is clearly shown in FIG. 4, the yarn-engaging portions 14 and 15 are curved and have their concave edge portions engaging the yarn.

The rod 11 is supported by a support means described below for free -'fa1ling movement in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 4. However, the engagement of the portions 14 and 15 of the yarn-engaging means with the pair of yarns 16 and 17, respectively, prevents free falling movement of the rod 11 to a given end position in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 4. However, with the construction of the invention if one of the yarns breaks, the yarn-engaging means 12 will swing freely with respect to the rod 11 to a position releasing the latter for falling movement. Thus, if it is assumed, for example, that the yarn 16 shown in FIG. 4 breaks for some reason, then since the yarn-engaging means 12 still engages the yarn 17, the yarn-engaging means 12 will swing freely yarn-stop- 3 with respect to the rod 11 in a counterclockwise direction to the illustrated dotted position (FIG. 4), and thus the rod 11 will be released for movement in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 4. Of course, if the yarn 17 breaks then the yarn-engaging means 12 would swing in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 4, but in this case also the single rod 11 would be released for falling movement in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 4. Thus, with the simple structure shown in FIG. 4 it is possible for a single rod 11 to have connected to it the yarn-engaging means of .the invention which will guarantee that this single rod will fall freely to a predetermined position when any one of the plurality of yarns breaks.

Referring now to FIG. 2, it will be seen that the structure includes a bracket carrying a pivot 21 on which the rod 11 is supported for free falling movement about a predetermined axis which is formed by the pin 21. The balancing of the rod 11 is such that it will fall freely to the dotted line position shown in FIG. 2 from the solid line position shown in FIG. 2, and of course the yarnengaging means 12 maintains the rod 11 in the solid line position shown in FIG. 2 as long as this yarn-engaging means engages the plurality of yarns 16 and 17. The rod 11 also carries a flag in the form of a brightly colored disc 20, for example, which is clearly visible to the operator even from a relatively great distance, so that if the operator notices that the flag has been displaced from the solid to the dotted line position shown in FIG. 2, the operator will of course know that yarn breakage has occurred.

The rod 11 has one of its ends connected by the pin 13 to the yarn-engaging means 12, and the other end of the rod 11 is pivotally connected to an elongated element 18 which forms a means for actuating automatically a device such as the cutting device 19 which is actuated by displacement of the actuating means 18 from the solid to the dotted line position indicated in FIG. 2. Thus, during the free falling movement of the rod 11 from the solid to the dotted position shown in FIG. 2, the actuating means 18 will be displaced to the right, as viewed in FIG. 2, from the solid to the dotted line position shown in FIG. 2, and this movement of the actuating means 18 will cause the cutting device 19 to be actuated. A notch 18a (FIG. 2) formed in the actuating means 18 pulls back a peg 23 (FIG. 3) fixed in a lever 24, causing a further peg 25, also fixed in the lever 24, to be withdrawn from a hole in the knife blade 26. The peg 25 normally retains the blade 26 in the position shown in FIG. 3 against the action of a spring 27, but on withdrawal, the spring 27 snaps down the blade 26 onto a complementary blade 28, cutting the yarn 16, 17. This cutting device will out both of the yarns 16 and 17 which pass over the yarn guide 29, in advance of the forwarding roller to which these yarns move from the pair of supply packages, and thus lapping as referred to above is reliably avoided. However, if desired, the actuating means 18 may also actuate in a known way a structure which simply stops the forwarding of the yarns when the rod 11 falls to the position indicated in dotted lines in FIG. 2. Such a structure is illustrated diagrammatically in FIG. 6, which shows a pair of forwarding rollers 31 biasscd towards each other by a spring 32. The arm 11 in its dotted line position completes an electric circuit containing a battery 33 and solenoids 34. Iron pieces 35 fixed to the roller supporting arms are drawn into the energized solenoids 34, separating the rollers 31 and stopping yarn feed.

Of course, while the invention has been described in connection with a yarn-engaging means for engaging only two yarns, the principle of the invention is equally applicable to devices for engaging more yarns. For example, if the invention is to be used with a structure which is required to detect the breakage of one of four yarns, then the single rod 11 has swingably connected thereto an elongated arm 22 (FIG. 5) which is swingably connected to the rod 11 intermediate its ends, preferably midway between its ends, and this arm will swingably carry at its outer ends a pair of yarn-engaging devices 12 as described above, with these devices 12 engaging the four yarns. The result is that when any one of these yarns breaks one of the devices 12 will necessarily swing with respect to the arm 22 which is connected to the rod 11 and then this entire arm will swing with respect to the rod 11 releasing the latter for free falling movement as described above, so that it is a simple matter to multiply the number of yarn-engaging devices 12 connecting them through suitable swing arms to the rod 11 so that with the invention it is possible to use only a single rod 11 while being capable of detecting the breakage of one of a plurality of yarns, as described above. Of course, the yarn-engaging means is preferably located at a position where yarn breakage is likely to occur. Thus, in the case of a false twist crimping machine, the yarn-engaging means would be situated between the top of the heater and the bottom of the false twist tube, but it is to be understood that the invention is applicable to other types of textile machines where a yarn cutter, for example, will operate on at least two yarns simultaneously. In other machines the yarn-engaging means will also be situated to engage the yarn at a location where breakage is most likely to occur.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of textile machines differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in yarn break-age detectors, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement to a given position; and yarn-engaging means carried by said rod for engaging a plurality of yarns while maintaining said rod above said given position thereof as long as said yarn-engaging means engages said plurality of yarns, said yarn-engaging means being swingably connected to said rod for turning with respect thereto to release said rod for falling movement to said given position thereof when any one of the plurality of y-arns breaks.

2. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement to a given position; yarn-engaging means carried by said rod for engaging a plurality of moving yarns while maintaining said rod above said given position thereof as long as said yarn-engaging means engages said plurality of yarns, said yarn-engaging means being swingably connected to said rod for turning with respect thereto to release said rod for falling movement to said given position thereof when any one of the plurality of yarns breaks; and actuating means operatively connected to said rod to be moved by said rod, when the latter falls to said given position thereof, to a position where said actuating means will actuate a mechanism which stops the yarn movement.

3. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement about a predetermined axis to a given position; and yarn-engaging means carried by said rod for engaging a plurality of yarns and for maintaining said rod above said given position as long as said yarn-engaging means engages said plurality of yarns, said yarn-engaging means being swingably connected to said rod for swinging with respect thereto to a position releasing said rod for falling movement about said axis to said given position when any one of said plurality of yarns breaks.

4. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement about a predetermined axis to a given position; yarn-engaging means carried by said rod for engaging a plurality of moving yarns and for maintaining said rod above said given position as long as said yarnengaging means engages said plurality of yarns, said yarn-engaging means being swingably connected to said rod for swinging with respect thereto to a position releasing said rod for falling movement about said axis to said given position when any one of said plurality of yarns breaks, said rod having a pair of opposed free ends to one of which said yarn-engaging means is connected; and means connected to the other end of said rod for actuating a mechanism which stops the yarn movement when said rod falls to said given position thereof.

5. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement to a given position; and an elongated yarnengaging member swingably connected intermediate its ends to said rod, said yarn-engaging member having on opposite sides of its connection to said rod 21 pair of yarn-engaging portions for respectively engaging a pair of yarns and said yarn-engaging member while engaging said pair of yarns maintaining said rod above said given position thereof, whereby when one of said pair of yarns breaks the yarn-engaging member will swing with respect to said rod to release the latter for falling movement to said given position thereof.

6. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement to a given position; and an elongated yarnengaging member swingably connected intermediate its ends to said rod, said yarn-engaging member having on opposite sides of its connection to said rod a pair of yarn-engaging portions for respectively engaging a pair of yarns and said yarn-engaging member While engaging said pair of yarns maintaining said rod above said given position thereof, whereby when one of said pair of yarns breaks the yarn-engaging member will swing with respect to said rod to release the latter for falling movement to said given position thereof, said yarn-engaging portions of said yarn-engaging member being curved and said connection of said yarn-engaging member to said rod being situated substantially centrally of said yarn-engaging member.

7. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement to a given position; an elongated arm swingably connected intermediate its ends to said rod; a pair of elongated yarn-engaglng members each one swingably connected intermediate its ends to said elongated arm, one on each side of its connection to said rod; each yarnengaging member having on opposite sides of its connection to said elongated arm a pair of yarn-engaging portions for respectively engaging a pair of yarns and said yarn-engaging members While engaging said pairs of yarns maintaining said rod above said given position thereof, so that when one of the yarns of said pairs of yarns breaks, the yarn-engaging member which engages that yarn will swing with respect to said elongated arm which will accordingly swing with respect to said rod to release the latter for falling movement to said given position thereof.

8. In a textile machine, in combination, an elongated rod; support means supporting said rod for free falling movement to a given position, an elongated arm swingably connected intermediate its ends to said rod, a pair of elongated yarn engaging members each one swingably connected intermediate its ends to said elongated arm, one on each side of its connection to said rod; each yarn-engaging member having on opposite sides of its connection to said elongated arm a pair of yarn-engag ing portions for respectively engaging a pair of yarns and said yarn-engaging members while engaging said pairs of yarns maintaining said rod above said given position thereof, so that when one of the yarns of said pairs of yarns breaks, the yarn-engaging member which engages that yarn will swing with respect to said elongated arm which will accordingly swing with respect to said rod to release the latter for falling movement to said given position thereof, said yarn-engaging portions of said yarn-engaging members being curved and said connections of said yarn-engaging members to said arm being situated substantially centrally of each yarn-engaging member and said connection of said arm to said rod being situated substantially centrally of said arm.

9. 1n a textile machine, in combination, support means; carrier means mounted on said support means for movement between a first and a second position; and a plurality of spaced yarn engaging means carried by said carrier means and adapted to simultaneously engage a corresponding plurality of yarns which latter exert a biasing action on said yarn engaging means tending to maintain said carrier means in said yarn engaging position, said plurality of yarn engaging means being arranged and constructed so as to maintain said carrier means in said yarn engaging position thereof as long as said plurality of yarn engaging means engages all of said plurality of yarns while causingupon a decrease in said biasing action resulting from breakage and consequent disengagement of one of said plurality of yarnssaid carrier means to move from said first into said second position thereof.

10. In a textile machine, in combination, support means; a carrier mounted on said support means for movement between a first and a second position and having permanently the tendency to move from said first into said second position; and a plurality of spaced yarn engaging means carried by said carrier for simultaneously engaging a corresponding plurality of yarns, said plurality of yarn engaging means being so arranged and constructed as to maintain said carrier in said yarn engaging position thereof by the biasing action of yarns engaging all of said plurality of yarn engaging means, such biasing action counteracting said permanent tendency of said carrier to move from said first into said second position thereof while-upon a decrease in said biasing action resulting from breakage and consequent disengagement of one of said plurality of yarnscausin g reduction of the biasing action exerted on said carrier by the other yarns still in engagement with the corresponding engaging means so as to permit said carrier to move lfIOl'l'l said first into said second position under the influence of said permanent tendency.

11. In a textile machine, in combination, support means; carrier means mounted on said support means for movement between a first and a second position; and a plurality of spaced yarn engaging means carried by said carrier means and adapted to simultaneously engage a corresponding plurality of yarns which latter exert a biasing action on said yarn engaging means tending to maintain said carrier means in said yarn engaging position, said plurality of yarn engaging means being arranged and constructed so as to maintain said carrier means in said yarn engaging position thereof as long as said plurality of yarn engaging means engages all of said plurality of yarns while causing-upon a decrease in said biasing action resulting from breakage and consequent disengagement of one of said plurality of yarnssaid carrier means to move from said first into said second position thereof; and actuating means operatively connected to said carrier to be actuated by the same when said carrier moves 7 from said first to said second position thereof so as to actuate-upon such movement of said carrier-a mechanism which stops the yarn movement.

12. In a textile machine, in combination, support means; a carrier mounted on said support means for movement between a first and a second position and having permanently the tendency to move from said first into said second position; and a plurality of spaced yarn engaging means carried -by said carrier for simultaneously engaging a corresponding plurality of yarns, said plurality of yarn engaging means being so arranged and constructed as to maintain said carrier in said yarn engaging position thereof by the biasing action of yarns engaging all of said plurality of yarn engaging means, such biasing action counteracting said permanent tendency of said carrier to move from said first into said second po sition thereof whileup0n a decrease in said biasing action resulting from breakage and consequent disengagement of one of said plurality of yarnscausing reduction of the biasing action exerted on said carrier by the other yarns still in engagement :with the corresponding References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,004,594 10/1911 Ryan 5781 1,454,111 5/ 1923 Field 2850 2,398,473 4/ 1946 Stahl et al. 28-51 2,406,530 8/ 1946 Bruestle 578l 2,793,490 5/1957 Adams 57--8l 3,010,273 11/1961 Bailey 28-51 3,120,093 2/1964 Ivanto 5786 MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

DONALD W. PARKER, L. K. RIMRODT,

Assistant Examiners. 

1. IN THE TEXTILE MACHINE, IN COMBINATION, AND ELONGATED ROD; SUPPORT MEANS SUPPORTING SAID ROD FOR FREE FALLING MOVEMENT TO A GIVEN POSITIONED; AND YARN-ENGAGING MEANS CARRIED BY SAID ROD FOR ENGAGING A PLURALITY OF YARNS WHILE MAINTAINING SAID ROD ABOVE SAID GIVEN POSITION THEREOF AS LONG AS SAID YARN-ENGAGING MEANS ENGAGES SAID PLURALITY OF YARNS, SAID YARN-ENGAGING MEANS BEING SWINGABLY CONNECTED TO SAID ROD FOR TURNING WITH RESPECT THERETO TO RELEASE SAID ROD FOR FALLING MOVEMENT TO SAID GIVEN POSITION THEREOF WHEN ANY ONE OF THE PLURALITY OF YARNS BREAKS. 